This invention relates to the railroad industry and has specific relevance to a two piece adjustable uncoupling lever having a unique interlock.
In the railroad industry, uncoupling levers are shiftably connected between a car's lock lifter and bracket carried by the frame. The uncoupling levers typically include a lower depending extension extending downwardly from the bracket. To uncouple to railroad cars, a railroad man walks along side of the railroad cars and strikes the lower extension to cause the rod to activate the car's lock lifter and release the cars. Such uncoupling levers have been formed from two rods slidably engaged to be adjustable relative to one another to accommodate the varying distance between the car's lock lifter and rod bracket. After being adjusted, the two rods must be secured against shifting relative to one another. An example of such two piece rods may be had by reference to U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,613. Heretofore, the two adjustable rods were fixed to one another by either welding after adjustment or by friction of the telescopically connected rods. Each method of retaining the rods in a fixed relationship have problems associated with them. For instance it is inconvenient to have a welder in the middle of a railroad yard to spot weld the uncoupler rods together. The friction method is not always reliable.